Myth or reality? Think yourself healthy

The law of attraction. Create your own reality. Manifest the life of your dreams. The buzz sucks us in—who wouldn’t want to achieve the ideal life simply by thinking the “right thoughts?” But what are the facts? This recurring column for skeptics explores the scientific research on the mind-body connection and the power of thought to shape our lives. “Think yourself thin,” for starters. If just deciding to be thinner worked,  it would be Everywoman’s dream come true. Surveys of satisfaction with weight and body image, in sources as diverse as Preventive Medicine and Glamour, consistently show that 40% to 64% of women hate their bodies and are working to lose weight.

With obesity rates continuing to rise, however, the first thinking step is changing the goal. The Centers for Disease Control most recent report shows that 26% of women are obese.  Rates are highest among non-Latino black women, at nearly 42%. The lifetime Eating disorder rates for women illustrate the other end of the problematic spectrum, with 0.9% of women diagnosed with anorexia, 1.5% diagnosed with bulimia, and 3.5% suffering from binge eating disorders. Among adolescent girls, the picture is even worse, with almost 15% of high school girls showing signs of an eating disorder. Forget thin–women need to aim for healthy.  As the National Eating Disorders Information Centre motto asserts: “It’s not our bodies that need changing. It’s our attitudes.” Size is relative–as most women know after any shopping trip for clothes.

Given the goal of thinking ourselves healthy, truth can be as strange and enticing as fiction. Researchers led by Jeff Brunstrom at the University of Bristol, UK, explored the effects of belief on perceptions of fullness in two recent studies. In the first study, participants were divided into two groups. Group #1 was shown a large portion of fruit that would allegedly be blended into a fruit smoothie, while group #2 saw a much smaller fruit portion for their smoothie. Each participant rated how full he/she expected to feel after consuming the drink, then drank the smoothie. Three hours later, everyone again rated how satisfied he/she felt. Participants who thought they had consumed larger portions reported feeling less hunger and more satisfaction, even though the drinks for both groups actually contained identical amounts of fruit.

In the second study, Brunstrom and colleagues designed a trick bowl of soup, attached to a hidden pump below the table. The quantity of soup in the bowl could be increased or decreased secretly, as the participant ate. This enabled researchers to determine if the actual amount consumed affected how full and satisfied each person felt compared to his/her perception of that amount. Each participant again rated how hungry he/she felt three hours after eating. The memory or perception of how much soup was in the bowl was directly related to satisfaction of hunger, not the actual quantity of soup eaten.

Other research suggests that expectations alone are a powerful key to success when it comes to healthy weight. Emily Finch and colleagues at the University of Minnesota examined the role of an ‘optimistic’ versus ‘balanced’ mindset with 349 adults. ‘Optimistic’ dieters focused on positive aspects of weight loss outcome, such as wearing a smaller size and receiving compliments. ‘Balanced’ dieters noted positive as well as negative aspects of weight loss, such as avoiding favorite foods and feeling hungry. This factor of ‘optimistic’ or ‘balanced’ was contrasted with initial expectations about how much weight s/he could lose. The traditional belief is that having higher, i.e., unrealistic, expectations leads to greater dissatisfaction and disappointment. Finch’s work found the opposite. It didn’t matter if dieters were enthralled with how wonderful weight loss would be (optimistic) or knew the process would be hard (balanced). Participants who lost the most weight were those who initially expected to lose the most weight. Over time, satisfaction with weight lost was reinforced. The more a dieter hoped to lose, the more s/he lost—and the more s/he lost, the more satisfied s/he became, leading to additional pounds dropped. A positive cycle was created and maintained by simply believing that success was possible.

Research led by Anthony Fabricatore of the University of Pennsylvania Medical School found similar results on the role of expectations in the treatment of obesity. There were four treatment groups; all participants were deemed to have ‘unrealistic expectations’ about weight loss. These high expectations were not a deterrent to weight loss, again, contrary to accepted belief. In fact, in one group, weight loss expectations were directly related to achieved weight loss. Participants who expected to lose the most actually shed the most pounds, just as in Finch’s study.

Finally, beliefs about activity clearly influence weight and health. Research by Alia Crum and Ellen Langer of Harvard Medical School involved a group of 84 female hotel housekeepers. While women were not obese, most had excess weight. Half of the women attended seminars and received pamphlets describing the health benefits of their daily tasks, showing how their work fulfilled the Surgeon General’s fitness criteria. The other women were not given any health information. Health assessments of blood pressure, weight, body fat, hip-to-waist ratio, and body mass index were taken for both groups at baseline and again four weeks later. At the second time point, the women in the seminar group perceived that they were now getting more exercise, when actually their tasks were unchanged. And their health showed significant positive changes as a result, with improvements in all measures.

Believe that you will struggle endlessly with food issues, compromise your health, feel stuck in your workouts, and face deprivation when eating for health? I guarantee that’s what you’ll find. Expect to feel satisfied with smaller meals, burn up calories with all your activities, and achieve success in your healthy weight efforts? Expect the best, and perhaps you’ll be pleasantly surprised, finally achieving mastery of your body issues. The research cited above does not say that thinking your way healthy while plopped on the couch with popcorn and chocolate is a sure-fire formula for success. It does point to the powerful effect of belief in your efforts.

This science lesson can translate into your daily life. Change your thinking by replacing the subtle brain chatter that reflects your beliefs. Instead of “I’ll never be thin” say “I can achieve a healthy weight.” Affirm that “this is a satisfying portion” instead of “what a measly meal—I’ll be starved.” Tune into how your body is burning calories with every breath, step, reach, and lift. Even though every diet on a glossy magazine cover is touted as “easy” or “magic”, significantly bucking the national trend of consuming too much food will test your willpower. Reframe this challenge as an inevitable part of the process, rather than as insurmountable—and you can think your way to a healthy body.

Posted by Ann Dunnewold on Aug 22 2010. Filed under Mind & Body. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry